Article Summary –
Longtime Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) employee Michael Volesky was fired in a move he claims was politically motivated, following a charge of hunting without permission that was subsequently dropped by the county attorney. The charge was based on Volesky’s use of a road to access National Forest land for hunting, which was argued to be trespassing. Volesky asserts that this action is part of a campaign to remove employees who worked on controversial issues such as carnivore management and land access during the tenure of the previous Democratic governors, by using a “tortured legal explanation” to justify their actions.
Montana FWP Employee Claims Dismissal is Politically Motivated
Michael Volesky, a former Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) employee, claims his recent dismissal was politically motivated. Volesky, previously the FWP’s chief of operations, insists that the department lacked justifiable cause to terminate him following the dropping of a hunting-related charge.
Volesky was fired on June 10, three months after a hunting-without-permission charge against him was dropped. The FWP spokesperson, Greg Lemon, stated the termination resulted from a thorough external investigation but provided no further details.
Volesky believes the department tarnished his image with derogatory insinuations related to the hunting charge. He claimed the charge stemmed from a 2023 hunting trip in the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest.
According to court documents, Volesky accessed National Forest land to hunt via Forest Service Road 1890. However, Tom Burgess, who owns the land through which the road passes, filed a complaint alleging Volesky trespassed.
FWP Chief of Enforcement Ron Howell cited Volesky for failure to obtain landowner permission for hunting and placed him on paid administrative leave. Volesky’s attorney argued that the road is public and that he was previously granted permission to hunt on the land by Burgess’ late father.
Volesky criticized the department for relying on a flawed legal explanation to suspend him, despite the charge being dropped. He suggested that the application of this reasoning could limit public land access across Montana.
Volesky suspects his dismissal relates to “political discrimination,” given his work on natural resource issues for previous Democratic governors. He hypothesizes that individuals with differing views on controversial issues pressured current Republican governor, Greg Gianforte, and appointed FWP directors to remove long-standing employees.
Volesky’s dismissal follows a pattern of long-term employees leaving leadership positions at the department. The FWP is currently undergoing an audit by the Legislative Audit Division, focusing on hiring, supervision, and disciplinary practices between 2019 and 2023.
The department, with an annual budget of approximately $110 million, employs about 750 full-time staff.
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